Mick Heyman, CFA, is the author of Mellow Your Money: How to Surf the Market and Build Wealth without Stressing Yourself Out and the founder of Heyman Investment Counseling. With a distinguished 40-year career in wealth management, Mick has built a reputation for helping individuals and institutions grow and preserve their wealth through a stress-free approach to investing.
Mick began his career at a small firm in Cincinnati before advancing to a role in Louisville, where he managed equity portfolios for a prestigious team overseeing billions in assets. Eventually, he transitioned to San Diego, where he now works closely with individual investors, some of whom have been with him for over three decades.
Mick holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Northwestern University and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). Although his formal education is in economics, Mick’s passion for philosophy and psychology has greatly influenced his understanding of market dynamics, emphasizing the role of human emotion in financial decision-making.
In addition to his book, Mick shares his insights on sound money management through articles on LinkedIn and has been featured in the Wall Street Journal and other financial publications. His work highlights the importance of a balanced approach to wealth, viewing financial health as integral to overall well-being.
Residing in San Diego, Mick enjoys an active lifestyle, engaging in tennis, golf, surfing, and practicing meditation, yoga, and qigong. He also has a deep appreciation for mystery novels and Russian literature. To learn more about Mick’s approach to investing, visit his website.
Why do you write in the genre that you do?
I believe there is much that I have learned from my experiences and misadventures in the investment markets and my life that have helped me reduce my stress regarding investing and I want to pass these lessons on in hopefully a fun and interesting way. Often as we look back in our life, we can see how our experiences weave together to have helped us grow and if we keep that growth mindset then even the most difficult experiences can eventually lead us a better place.
My experience in the markets just happens then to have been the fruitful ground for me to express the lessons I learned and hopefully help others as they grow not only as investors but in all aspects of their lives.
Do you keep a notebook of ideas?
Not consistently but when I have an idea will blog or post.
Do you have a muse?
No but am open to finding one!
Are you more of a fan of plot-driven stories or character-driven stories?
Mostly plot driven…though I love interesting characters who find truth in their experiences.
Fill in the blank: “People will like your book if they like stories about…”
A humble, self-deprecating character that somehow found truth and was able to grow from his experiences and misadventures in the market and in his life. Sometimes it was the experiences in the market that taught a valuable lesson about investing and maybe about life too or sometimes it was an experience in my life that taught me not just how to be a better person but also be a better investor.
I believe that I learn the most from stories and so this is how I present what I consider the most valuable lessons about investing. If someone is looking for a textbook, this is not that.
What are your thoughts on typewriters?
Fun memories but no desire to go back.
Would you rather own a bookstore or run a library?
Bookstore.
How do you name your characters? If you write nonfiction, do you ever change the names of your characters, and if so, how do you decide what names to change them to?
I try to fit my feeling of the name to the character, sometimes from experiences I had with the name I am picking, wished I could have used the name in one instance that I had to replace and still a little sad about it.
What is your favorite website that you use to promote your writing?
LinkedIn.
If Hollywood bought the rights to your book, would you want it to be turned into a movie or series?
Could work as a series.
Who is your dream audiobook narrator?
Scott Brick.
How many words or pages do you typically write in one writing session?
500 to 1,000.
Do you have any writing rituals?
No.
What are your passions/obsessions outside of writing?
Enjoy all kinds of outdoor activities, golf, tennis, surfing, pickleball, swimming. Also enjoy meditation and yoga and love spending time with my kids
Have you made any public appearances to promote your book?
Not yet, mostly podcasts and radio shows.
Who would you most want to read your book?
Investors young and old that want to grow their money in a less stressful way.
Who is on your Mt. Rushmore of greatest/inspirational authors?
Alan Watts, Dale Carnegie, Jesse Livermore and Fyodor Dostoevsky.
Is there a book that somebody gave to you that helped you pave the way to becoming a writer, or is there a book on writing that you recommend all writers read?
Jim Murray was a sports columnist who always had a creative and funny way to describe events. As a young person, I dreamed of writing with this type humor and doing it while passing along interesting and helpful information.
Have you ever mentored another writer with their writing?
No.
Is there an idea that a non-writer has pitched to you that you have considered writing?
No.
Do you ever use dreams as inspiration for your writing?
Yes! I believe that dream interpretation can help us greatly in our lives. In my opinion, it is the subconscious giving us information to help us grow, though sometime presenting stories in a confusing way, but that is part of the fun.
Are you a big reader? Do you own a large collection of books, or are you more of a borrower?
Have my collection. Somehow, the memory of what I was going through when I read the book can give me a good feeling.
Have you ever gone away to work on a piece of writing? If not, where would you go if you could?
Have not done that. Guess I could imagine some beautiful island like Barbados or Kauai.
What is an annoying thing that a non-writer has assumed about writers or the act of writing?
Not sure what is annoying, I was amazed by how many edits it takes and how hard it is to part ways and say it is finally done and can’t edit anymore.
How do you measure the success of your writing career?
I count success that I did it. Don’t need another book, though I’ve had a few ideas. Don’t need to sell many, but that would be nice just to know I am reaching more people but these shows and podcasts might just be the way I reach people and the book is the “tail wagging the dog….”
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